WASHINGTON, D.C. - Ohio Democratic U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown on Wednesday renewed his call for legislation to crack down on what he says are excessive overdraft fees that banks charge their customers.

Saying the charges amount to "predatory lending in disguise," Brown said constituents have told him of paying $32 overdraft penalties on a $24 check, and being charged steep overdraft fees when their utility bills were automatically deducted from their accounts at a time when they were hospitalized and couldn't deposit their paychecks.